Earth date: August 10, 2020
Are you registered to
vote?
If the answer is no or
you are not sure, skip this blog (as scintillating as it is) and go check on
your status. Go to: www.votetexas.gov/register-to-vote/ .
If you live elsewhere, it is just as easy to access voter registration
information in you state.
Be prepared.
Election day is
eighty-four days away (November 3rd) and the deadline to be registered
to vote is in half that time (October 5th). Do not wait; do it now.
It might take 30 days to get your card. Make sure it matches the ID you are
going to use, and if there is an error, you will have to get the registration
card corrected before you can use it. You might not have enough time to have it
fixed before Election Day.
The website will provide most
of the information you need: who is eligible to vote, how to get an
application, whether you are already registered, how to report a lost
registration card, and how to update or correct information. Do it immediately
since as previously stated, time is of the essence.
In the meantime, make
sure you also have ONE of the many forms of acceptable ID you will need to take
with you to vote in person. In Texas, there are eight acceptable forms including
one called RID, a reasonable impediment declaration for those who cannot
provide one of the other seven. Another thing you can do while you wait is to
become familiar with your options on how and where to vote. Some people in
Texas are eligible to vote by mail, and because of the pandemic, early voting
in person in Texas has been expanded from October 13 through October 30, 2020.
Some places offer curbside service for those who cannot enter the building to
vote, so a ballot can be taken out to them, and they also offer drop off voting
for those with a mail in ballot who prefer not to use the Post Office. Call
your local voting district to explore your options beforehand. Don’t go to all
this work and then cannot deliver your vote.
Be informed.
Download and print a
sample ballot before you go to vote and study your choices, marking or
highlighting the candidate you finally choose. Study the responsibilities of the office
before selecting the candidate of your choice. Sometimes the title of the
office is misleading. For instance, the Texas Railroad Commission does not
regulate railroads. It has had nothing to do with the railroads since 2005. It
regulates oil, gas, coal, uranium, and the delivery of each throughout the
state. Knowing the responsibilities of the office helps you to assess the
candidates based on their qualifications, backgrounds, and experience. No
office is inconsequential, so study all of them before selecting the best candidate.
As October 13 approaches,
you will be ready. You will be prepared and informed. You will have done
everything possible to vote well, safely, and wisely, and if ever we needed all
voters to get out and make their voices heard, it is 2020.
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